"Breaking Dawn," "Dexter" help kick off Comic-Con 2011

Tim Kenneally

3 Min Read

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap) - Comic-Con 2011 will get off to a rousing start later this month, with vampires, werewolves and sword-swinging warriors dominating the agenda on the first full day of the convention.

<p>Attendees arrive in costume for the third day of the pop culture convention Comic Con in San Diego, California July 24, 2010. REUTERS/Mike Blake</p>

Following a preview night on July 20, Thursday’s highlights include a sneak peek of the rabidly anticipated vampire flick “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1,” along with a Q&A session with director Bill Condon and cast members.

HBO’s hit fantasy series “Game of Thrones” will also be well represented on Thursday, when George R.R. Martin, author of the novel series “A Song of Ice and Fire” which inspired the series, holds court with fellow fantasy scribes Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss and others for the panel “Putting the ‘Epic’ in ‘Epic Fantasy’ -- Writing to Excite!”

HBO will also present a panel and Q&A session for the series with stars Peter Dinklage, Emilia Clarke, Jason Momoa, Kit Harington and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. Martin will moderate the affair.

Fox, meanwhile, will hold press conferences for the sci-fi thriller “In Time” featuring the movie’s stars, Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried, and “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” with star Andy Serkis and director Rupert Wyatt answering questions.

Showtime will feature a panel set to include “Dexter” series star Michael C. Hall and season six guest-star Colin Hanks, “Shameless” stars William H. Macy and Emmy Rossum, and an exclusive trailer for the new series “Homeland,” starring Claire Danes, Damian Lewis and Mandy Patinkin.

Also of note for the day: an appearance by “Evil Dead” alum Bruce Campbell, who will be on hand to discuss his starring turn in the USA Network made-for-TV movie “Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe.” “Burn Notice” writer, creator and executive producer Matt Nix will also join the panel.

Magicians-turned-myth debunkers Penn Jilette and Raymond Teller will be on hand on Thursday as well, discussing (well, Penn will, anyway) their new Discovery series “Penn & Teller Tell a Lie,” which will present several incredible stories each episode, with one of them being revealed as an untruth by episode’s end.